Fatal Crash in Melbourne

Tragedy disrupted a pleasure trip on Tuesday when a chartered plane crashed into an Australian mall, killing all five people on board—including four notable Texans on the “trip of a lifetime.”

The men were Russell Munsch, co-founder of a law firm; Glenn Garland, a retired CEO of a Texas-based energy efficiency company; Greg Reynolds De Haven, a former FBI agent; and John Washburn, a retired Dallas executive of Sammons Enterprises. All four men were killed shortly after the Beechcraft charter plane took off from Melbourne’s Essendon Airport, bound for King Island, Tasmania, when the aircraft crashed at approximately 9 AM. Max Quartermain, a pilot from Melbourne who owns Corporate and Leisure Aviation with his wife Cilla, is believed to have been flying the aircraft.

Incredibly, the mall was empty at the time.

While investigators have tentatively identified the cause of the crash as “catastrophic engine failure”, family and friends mourn the victims.

Garland was the CEO of Texas-based CLEAResult, an energy efficiency company, until his retirement in 2015. On Tuesday, the company said Garland was one of the passengers killed. He was said to be having a great time golfing with friends on his trip to New Zealand and Australia, and his Facebook account showed it. “Melbourne is one magnificent and amazing city,” Garland posted Monday, one day before the crash.

Glenn Garland

He shared his anxiety about flying in a small plane. Earlier in the trip, he said he was nervous about flying to Milford Sound in New Zealand. “I only burned 5,000 calories of anxiety on the flight over,” Garland posted on February 8. “Beats a 5-hour one way bus ride.”

“We at CLEAResult are heartbroken to hear of Glenn Garland’s passing,” the company said in a statement. “Glenn was an inspirational leader who co-founded our company with a unique vision for the vast potential of the energy efficiency industry. Our deepest sympathies and thoughts are with his family during this difficult time.”